Darth Maul's new show, Star Wars: Maul - Shadow Lord, will see the iconic villain turn on someone he once considered an ally. The new Disney+ series is the next animated installment from Lucasfilm, following Maul after the events of The Clone Wars. The iconic Sith's introduction in Episode I: The Phantom Menace was short-lived thanks to Obi-Wan Kenobi, but the villain has had a second life in the animated Star Wars world.
Maul was known for being the Sith warrior under the stewardship of Darth Sidious, aka Emperor Palpatine. The apprentice was sent out to do his master's bidding in The Phantom Menace, and to put a stop to the effort of Qui-Gon Jinn and his apprentice, Obi-Wan. At the time, Maul was depicted as a dedicated and deadly student who willingly put his life on the line for Sidious and their plans, which ultimately cost him his own flesh and blood and left him cleaved in two.
When things pick up with Maul in Shadow Lord, a lot has changed for the ex-apprentice, most notably his relationship with his former mentor. Maul's voice actor, Sam Witwer, revealed to The HoloFiles that when Maul - Shadow Lord begins after The Clone Wars, it finds the Zabrak warrior "reassessing everything." Witwer added that "a lot of the people that were supposed to be there for [Maul] were not," and revealed Maul is "a little apprehensive" about the Empire's new regime that he helped to usher in:
"He’s confused, and a little apprehensive. We pick up after 'The Clone Wars'. The Empire has taken over, and Maul’s reassessing everything. There were plans in place that were supposed to insulate him from the changes when the Empire came to power, and a lot of the people that were supposed to be there for him were not.
He’s getting back on his feet, the dust is clearing, and he’s looking around at the Empire— the thing he and his master had been working toward since he was an apprentice—and thinking, ‘Is this what Palpatine had in mind? How do I feel about this?’ "
After Maul was defeated by Obi-Wan, he crawled his way to survival, eventually regaining his lower half with cybernetics and seeking revenge upon the Jedi who injured him. However, he did so without the support of his mentor, as Darth Sidious essentially abandoned Maul after he was injured and thought-dead. When Sidious did learn of his survival, he plotted to kill Maul's brother (which is another element that will be touched on in Maul - Shadow Lord).
This betrayal led to a key realization for Maul. According to Witwer, Maul has come to terms with the fact that Palpatine is "the root of his suffering," and in Shadow Lord he will look for a way to "shake his fist at him:"
"He’s very angry at Palpatine. He understands now that that guy is the root of his suffering. In 'Shadow Lord' he sees it even clearer. Everywhere he looks in the Empire, he sees Palpatine’s hand. If Maul’s going to shake his fist at him, he has to believe he’s somehow superior to Palpatine. If he’s not, then he deserves everything that happened to him.”
Star Wars: Maul - Shadow Lord will continue to fill in the blanks of Maul's story after The Clone Wars, and prior to his return in Star Wars: Rebels. The new Disney+ show, starring Witwer and the voices of Gideon Adlon, Wagner Moura, and Richard Ayoade, will begin releasing episodes from April 6.
Maul and Sidious: Master and Apprentice No More
Sam Witwer's comments confirm that Maul - Shadow Lord will usher in a complete reversal of the once-tight-knit master-apprentice duo.
As Yoda explained to Mace Windu in The Phantom Menace, the Rule of Two is a sacred decree among the Sith, dictating that "always two there are, no more, no less, a master and an apprentice." For a time, this master and apprentice were Sidious and Maul, until Sidious swiftly replaced him with Count Dooku, and then Darth Vader.
Maul's hatred of Palpatine may only serve to make him stronger, particularly as the Dark Side feeds on jealousy and anger. It will also fuel the Sith Lord's actions in Maul - Shadow Lord, as Maul will rebuild his own criminal syndicate on Janix in the show. And, as Witwer alluded to, this time, Maul will be seeking to create power of his own that is free from his ex-master's influence.
In some eyes, Maul's opposition to Palpatine could make him a hero in Shadow Lord, but his actions against the law enforcement on Janix and the path he continues to walk down in Rebels and Solo: A Star Wars Story prove he never strays too far from his villainous ways.
